Panama City Travel Guide, Panama

Panama city is located near Colon and Bocas Del Toro. A city bustling with life yet not overcrowded, mysterious yet not old-fashioned, the place holds a unique charm for tourists from all around the globe. Panama City’s unspoiled natural beauty, its pleasant climate, its rich culture and historic past together with its superior infrastructure has placed it among the top tourist destinations people flock to; in fact, the city hotels have the second-highest occupancy rate in the world after Perth.

Panama City Travel Guide- Statistics

Area: 275 sq km

Population: 1,813,097

Language: Spanish, English

Currency: Balboa

Panama City Travel Guide -Architecture

The historical districts of Panama City such as Casco Viejo or Casco Antiguo (which was designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1998 and represent colonial architecture) are the prime attractions of Panama City. No doubt, however, the city’s skyline is equally defined by modern day architecture. The metropolis has many towering structures – mostly glass and steel skyscrapers which house office and residential complexes, shopping malls, eateries and hotels.

Panama City Travel Guide -Infrastructure and Economy

Panama City’s infrastructure places it much ahead of other Central American cities. It is not merely a city of high-rises, rather the city promises all the amenities of civic-life – right from drinking water to healthcare facilities, electricity to drainage systems and telecommunications to information technology. Petroleum products, paper products, copper, refined-sugar, chemicals are a few industries that are responsible for the high economic development of the city. Panama City is a busy business center and has enough banks and financial institutions to support commercial activity.

Being the hub of Panama’s tourism industry, Panama has quite a few world-class hotels and even nightclubs as well as restaurants. Panama City has world-class transportation infrastructure to give the necessary boost to its booming tourism industry. Apart from the famous Centennial Bridge (that crosses the Panama Canal), the city has an international airport, Tocumen International Airport, which is served by direct flights to and from various American and European cities. Panama City also has a regional airport, Marcos A. Gelabert. Buses are the chief means of public transportation and fares are comparatively cheap.

Panama City Travel Guide -People and Culture

The Panama City area has been inhabited by people belonging to diverse cultures and races. The present culture is a mix of Caribbean, Spanish and French cultural influences.

The people of the city are simple and quite friendly by nature – no wonder that people of foreign origin are continually opting for Panama for retirement. Spanish is the official language of Panama, but people also speak and understand English. The people of Panama City are avid soccer fans and the city has professional football teams, which are part of the nation’s leading football leagues.